Cold winds and snow storms, what else can you expect from a region where winter lasts almost all year round? However, people live here too. The capital of Chukotka is the city of Anadyr. Who inhabits it? What is the history of this city? We will reveal details about it.
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Chukotka is located in the Far North. It completely occupies the peninsula of the same name, as well as several nearby islands. In Russia, this district is surrounded by the Magadan Region, Kamchatka Territory and Yakutia, and borders the United States in the east. Its shores are washed by the Pacific and Arctic Oceans.
Most of the district is located beyond the Arctic Circle. Only its inhabitants know what the sea is like in Chukotka: narwhals, fin whales, various whales and walruses. The temperature of local waters rarely exceeds 12 degrees. If we talk seriously about the seas of Chukotka, then these harsh lands are washed by three equally harsh seas - the Bering, Chukotka and East Siberian.
Winter here lasts almost ten months, and throughout the year there is a cold subarctic climate. The vast expanses with numerous hills, mirror-clear lakes and rocky shores are covered with snow most of the time. There is no summer as such in the region; the average temperature in July is only +5-+10 degrees. The region has almost no roads and no railways at all. The main transport on the peninsula is trucks and all-terrain vehicles.
The Chukotka Autonomous Okrug has many records. On the territory of the district there are the extreme eastern points of Russia (Cape Dezhnev and Ratmanov Island), as well as the northernmost (Pevek) and easternmost city of the country (Anadyr).
Within its borders is the easternmost permanent settlement - Uelen, and the northernmost port of the country - Pevek. The rocky Cape Navarin is the windiest place in Russia, and Wrangel Island is home to the largest population of polar bears in the Arctic.
Capital of Chukotka
Anadyr is the largest settlement in the district and its administrative center. It is located on the shore of the Bering Sea estuary of the same name, where the Anadyr and Kazachka rivers flow into it. A little to the west of the city is Onemen Bay. Anadyr is located on a slight rise, its center is at an altitude of 35 meters above sea level. To the southwest of it stretch vast areas of flat tundra, occasionally covered with hills.
This is one of the most remote cities in the country. Local time differs from Moscow time by as much as nine hours. Geographically, the city is much closer to Alaska than to the capital of Russia (700 km to Nome, 6192 km to Moscow).
The area of Anadyr is only 20 square kilometers. It is built up with panel and block high-rise buildings. The appearance of the city is a little unusual. All his houses are colorful and resemble a toy town. This is how they cope with the pallor of local landscapes, because a small number of sunny days and the lack of bright colors around can cause a bad mood and even depression.
Climate
The climate of Anadyr is subarctic marine. In addition, it has a monsoonal nature. In fact, there are only two seasons here, and with each change, the air masses also change. In winter they are cold and dry, coming from the continent. Their effect is softened by the proximity of the sea. Therefore, winters in the city of Anadyr are easier to endure than in other regions of Chukotka.
Summers are very short and much cooler than in the rest of the region. At this time, the city's climate is influenced by air currents from the ocean. They bring precipitation, fog and cloudiness, depriving residents of sunlight.
Winter in Anadyr lasts seven months, about 70 days of which there are snowstorms. Spring is almost invisible and lasts only for the month of May. Autumn lasts from late August to late September.
The average temperature in July is +11 degrees, in January it reaches -22 degrees. Very often strong winds blow, which can reach up to 45 m/s. In summer they lead to storms and hurricanes, in winter they create strong blizzards and snowstorms. In 1968, one of these winds carried a helicopter across the airfield.
Animal and plant life
The nature of Chukotka is not as lush and colorful as in the tropical regions of the Earth, but it cannot be called completely poor either. More than a thousand species of mosses and lichens, as well as hundreds of species of trees and shrubs grow here.
The district is divided into an arctic desert zone, forest-tundra, tundra and deciduous taiga. The city of Anadyr is located in the tundra zone. Alder, cotton grass, sedge, dwarf cedar, rowan, blueberry bushes, lingonberries, rose hips, and shiksha grow around it. In addition, the tundra is rich in mushrooms. A large layer of permafrost prevents plants from deepening their roots. As a result, Chukotka's trees are not tall, and many look like shrubs.
The area is home to hares, bighorn sheep, black squirrels, chipmunks, minks, and predatory mammals such as fox, wolf, wolverine, polar bear, and sable. More than two hundred species of birds fly to the region. The waters of the Bering Sea are full of fish and marine mammals. In the Anadyr Estuary, locals catch smelt, pike, nelma, and salmon, and tourists watch seals and beluga whales.
History of the district capital
The history of Anadyr as a city is connected with the development of the northern lands by Russians. Chukotka was discovered thanks to Semyon Dezhnev in 1648. Then the region was nicknamed Zakolymye. In 1660, on the site of the first winter hut, the Anadyr fort was founded, which was located 10 kilometers from the village of Markovo.
In 1889, researcher and doctor Leonid Grinevetsky founded the Novo-Mariinsk post in the Anadyr Okrug, placing it on the shore of the estuary. At that time, Chukchi settlements were located on these lands. The location was very convenient - the spit consisted of rubble, not swampy tundra, and was a small hill.
Gradually, the post began to grow into a village, which later became the capital of Chukotka. It was renamed Anadyr in 1924. At this time, about 200 people lived here, there was a library and a first-aid post. Ten years later, the industrial development of Chukotka began, and Anadyr became the center of the district. Its population increased to a thousand people.
The first school and pedagogical college appeared in the village. During wartime, reserve airfields were built here, and the production of edible tin began. After World War II, the settlement continued to expand: a seaport was created, a dam was built on the Kazachka River, and the first water supply system appeared. In 1965, Anadyr received city status.
Population
Residents of the city are called Anadyrs. In terms of population, Anadyr is the largest city in Chukotka. It is home to about 15,000 people. These are mainly Russians, there are also Ukrainians, Belarusians and Tatars.
The indigenous population of Anadyr and the entire region are the Chukchi, Evens, Eskimos and Chuvans. They are engaged in traditional crafts: fishing, raising deer, hunting whales. The emergence of industrial cities and towns also influenced their life. Those who live in cities often work in local businesses and live in standard apartments, like non-Indigenous residents.
But the majority adhere to the traditional way of life and even make money from tourists. They move further away from cities, periodically wandering across the expanses of the tundra.
The most numerous ethnic group is the Chukchi. In Anadyr in 2002 there were 1,200 people. Near the city is their ethnic village Tavaivaam. There are much fewer representatives of other nationalities. In 2002, there were 153 Eskimos in the city of Anadyr, 200 Chuvans, and 142 Evens.
Many Chukchi still live in communities. They fish and sell handicrafts as souvenirs. Their traditional home is called yaranga. This is a portable tent covered with animal skins. You cannot see them in Anadyr or Tavaivaam, since ordinary panel houses were built there for the Chukchi.
The religion of the people, like that of the Eskimos, is animism. The Chukchi believe in the spirituality of the forces of nature, luminaries and animals, and believe in the existence of evil spirits. On some holidays, it is customary for them to “feed” the constellation or make a sacrifice to fire.
Life in Anadyr
This city is very clean and well maintained. All buildings and residential buildings in it are built on stilts, and communications are carried out on top. This is done due to permafrost. It comes very close to the surface of the earth. In contact with buildings, its upper layers can thaw and damage the strength of the foundation.
Such a remote geographical location also affects local prices. Living in Anadyr is very expensive. The cost of food and gasoline is almost twice the price in Moscow. There are few local products in the region, mainly deer meat and fish. The rest of the products are delivered to the city.
Residents of the city work at the fish factory, as well as at coal and gold mining enterprises, which are located nearby. There are two power plants in Anadyr - thermal and wind. The Anadyr wind farm is considered one of the largest in Russia.
You can get to the city by air. The local airport has flights to Khabarovsk and Moscow. It is located on the other side of the estuary, from which a helicopter flies to Anadyr.
Sights of Anadyr
The capital of Chukotka is not short of attractions. On the main square of the city - Lenin Square - there is a museum "Heritage of Chukotka". This is a very modern center with multimedia screens and other innovations. In it you can get a closer look at the life of Chukotka and the history of its development.
The Holy Trinity Cathedral on the shore of the estuary is the world's largest wooden church, which stands on permafrost. It was founded only in 2002. The temple was built taking into account all the nuances of local soils and weather. Thus, refrigeration units in its foundation do not allow the soil to heat higher than -3 degrees, and all the aisles are combined so that the building can withstand cold and wind.
In Anadyr there is a monument to Nicholas the Wonderworker, writer Yuri Rytkheu, a monument to Lenin and several memorials. Mount St. Dionysius is located 50 km from the city; other mountains are visible across the river to the west. About 7 km away there is St. Michael's Hill, on which there is a tropospheric communication station.
Souvenirs
The main, and most importantly, tasty purchase in the capital of Chukotka can be red caviar and fish. They are easy to find in the store, but it is better to get them from local fishermen. The Chukchi sell a kilogram of caviar for about 400 rubles.
Special permission is required for your own fishing and the purchase of some souvenirs. But you can pick berries and mushrooms freely. They begin to appear in the summer-autumn period. On the pebble beach of Anadyr, in addition to the usual crushed stone, you can find onyx and other gems. They will be an excellent souvenir.
A permit will be required for those who want to take seal tusks or deer antlers with them. A ball made from seal skin can also serve as an exotic item. Traditional souvenirs also include items made from whalebone, carved figurines made from bone or fangs, and clothing made from leather and animal fur.
A protected, little-studied and even less inhabited region, Chukotka is one of those places on our planet where severity and beauty merge together. Permafrost, wind, blizzard and, at the same time, majestic nature that literally takes your breath away, unique sights and incomparable local flavor. Chukotka seems to be specially created in order to test a person’s strength, and those who are not afraid of the not always gentle sun, far from refreshing, but seemingly scorching winds and snow storms, will be fully rewarded by seeing landscapes here that are not found anywhere else in the world. world.
It is precisely due to the fact that the peninsula is inaccessible and characterized by harsh climatic conditions that the same landscape that could be seen several thousand years ago has been preserved here to our turbulent days. This is the special attractiveness of this region - the protected, powerful nature practically untouched by man.
How to get there
Direct flights from Chukotavia and several other cities fly from Moscow and many large cities of Russia to the capital of Chukotka, Anadyr. In addition, in Chukotka there are airports in the villages and cities of Pevek, Lavrentiya, Bilibino and some others, some of them even accept flights from American Alaska. There is another option - a dry cargo ship from Vladivostok, but this is not regular transportation and everything will depend on the traveler’s ability to negotiate with many people.
A special feature of Chukotka is its border location. In order to enter here, you need to obtain a special permit, which is obtained through a tourist package or at the invitation of a private person and certified by the Border Department.
Search for air tickets to the city of Anadyr (the nearest airport to the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug)
Geography and climate
The peninsula, with its rocky shores, cuts two oceans; hills rise on the coast, rivers flow and a huge number of mirror lakes are scattered. Perhaps there is no better place in the world to take a break from civilization, seriously test yourself and get incomparable impressions than the Chukotka Peninsula.
The weather in Chukotka is very heterogeneous, but very changeable everywhere. And if bad weather strikes, life literally stops. So, in the eastern part of the peninsula, you can sit at the airport for several days until the local dense fog, cloudiness, or wind stops. In the continental part of Chukotka there is almost no such problem, but the cold in winter reaches -50 °C. In the capital of the peninsula, winter temperatures range between -25 and -30 °C. And when a strong wind is added to such indicators, there is no time for walking.
The best season for traveling in Chukotka is from early July to mid-September, or from late April to early May.
Colors and features of Chukotka
Having visited Chukotka, it is impossible not to come into contact with the local flavor. Getting to know the traditions of the indigenous peoples - the Chukchi, the Eskimos - will be very interesting and exciting. These northern residents sacredly honor their traditions, so here you can often see national songs, dances, competitions in traditional sports (dog or reindeer sled racing, smelt fishing championship or kayak racing). Local residents will talk about the intricacies of hunting walruses, about the construction of warm dwellings, in which it seems that it should be very cold, but in fact, even in the most severe cold, which happens here all the time, heat reigns.
Transport
You can travel long distances around the peninsula only by air, unless, of course, you are traveling as part of a cruise group. However, you need to be prepared for the fact that prices are very high, and the vagaries of the weather can make significant changes to your travel plan. Air and helicopter flights are constantly delayed, or even canceled until better times.
Permafrost, wind, blizzard and, at the same time, majestic nature, which literally takes your breath away, unique sights and incomparable local color - this is what Chukotka is.
An alternative to airplanes and helicopters could be water transport, but, again, due to the weather, its operating time is limited, flights are irregular, and there is no point in talking about comfort. Other options are to hire a small boat or negotiate with an all-terrain vehicle driver, but there are almost no roads here.
Do not forget that food prices are very high, much higher than in the capital. This is explained by the remoteness of the peninsula and its inaccessibility. The same goes for restaurants and cafes, there are very few of them, the choice is very modest, but the prices are the opposite. In addition, it is worth remembering that paying with bank cards is not honored here, and there are catastrophically few ATMs, so it is always better for a tourist to have cash with him.
Another good option is to explore Chukotka from the sea during one of the cruises, for example, on the legendary Arctic “Captain Khlebnikov”.
Entertainment and attractions of Chukotka
Of course, the most important thing why tourists come here is the beautiful northern nature. It goes without saying that you won’t find such a crazy riot of colors here as in the southern regions. However, only in Chukotka can you clearly see how nature awakens after a long hibernation. The grayish tundra that has been lying for a long time under white snow, as if by magic, turns into a motley blanket that sets off the clear sky and blue icy bays, and along their shores lie not sunbathing bodies, but strange sea inhabitants.
Wrangel Island
One of the top places to get up close and personal with local wildlife is the famous Wrangel Island National Wildlife Refuge. Here there is the largest concentration of polar bears in the entire Arctic! In addition, here you can see sea walruses that seem lazy at first glance, graceful and proud symbols of the north - deer, and even such exotic representatives of the animal world as musk oxen. Wrangel Island became the first and so far the only place in the Arctic included in the UNESCO World Natural Heritage List.
Lazovsky Reserve
Another famous nature reserve of Chukotka is Lazovsky. Here you need to keep your eyes open, as quite by chance you may meet a strong and graceful Amur tiger. The territory of the park is famous for its diverse fauna and combination of vegetation from a variety of zones.
In the Lazovsky Nature Reserve you need to keep your eyes open, as quite by chance you may come across a strong and graceful Amur tiger.
"Beringia"
It is impossible not to mention another famous reserve, which is spread over several islands at once. We are talking about a natural-ethnic park called “Beringia”. Of course, one of the most interesting local attractions is the so-called “Whale Alley”, which is located on a piece of land with the unpronounceable name Itygran. This truly fascinating place was created about 5 centuries ago by the local indigenous population - the Eskimos.
The alley consists of two rows of huge whale bones, which look both eerie and majestic, especially in combination with the steel-gray sea and tundra.
Anadyr
The capital of the peninsula, the city of Anadyr, located on the river of the same name, can also boast of its attractions. For example, the famous museum “Heritage of Chukotka”, which presents various exhibits telling about the nature, life, traditions and customs of local residents.
In addition, in Anadyr there is the world’s northernmost Orthodox wooden church in honor of the Life-Giving Trinity, and not far from it, on the highest hill of the city, there is a monument to St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. In general, the capital of the peninsula is also a modern, well-kept city with beautiful residential buildings, each of which is brightly colored with drawings with local flavor. Much larger cities, including the capital of Russia, can envy such cheerful and elegant residential areas.
Renting a car in Russia without a driver inexpensively will become not only the most convenient, but also the most profitable option for you.
All the land of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is located in the regions of the Far North - that part of Russia that is located primarily north of the Arctic Circle. The joint-stock company occupies the adjacent part of the mainland and the islands of Ayon, Arakamchechen, Ratmanov and others. It is washed by the waters of three northern seas; all seas are covered with ice most of the year.The relief is elevated in the northeast (Chukchi Plateau, with heights above one and a half kilometers) and in the central part (Anadyr Plateau). Also in the central part is the swampy Anadyr lowland, and the coast is the rocky Chaun and Vankarem lowlands. On the territory of the district there are the extreme points of Russia: the eastern point is Ratmanov Island, the eastern continental point is Cape Dezhnev.
The only major river is the Anadyr. There is ice on the rivers for eight months a year; many rivers freeze to the very bottom.
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is the easternmost subject of the Russian Federation and a region of the Far North with the harshest climate. Along the coast there is a narrow strip of arctic desert, poor in vegetation, the vegetation in the rest of the territory is tundra: dwarf shrubs, lichen, cotton grass, sedge, myrtle, blueberry. Lichen and hummock tundras are used as reindeer pastures. In the basin of the Anadyr and other rivers there are forests of larch, poplar, choicenia, and birch; from shrubs - willow, alder, currant, raspberry, rose hip.
The fauna is also represented by tundra animals with an admixture of taiga species: arctic fox, fox, wolf, wolverine, chipmunk, squirrel, lemming, mountain hare, brown and polar bear, reindeer, bighorn sheep, muskrat, mink. There are a lot of birds: white and tundra partridges, ducks, geese, swans; on the coast - guillemots, eiders, and gulls forming bird colonies. The seas abound with valuable fish (chum salmon, pink salmon, char) and sea animals (walrus, seal, gray whale); whitefish, nelma, and grayling are caught in rivers and lakes.
The real curse of these places, which does not give life to either people or deer, are small blood-sucking insects: mosquitoes, midges, horseflies.
Archaeological research has proven that the territory of modern Chukotka was inhabited at the end of the 2nd - beginning of the 1st millennium BC. e. The ancestors of the Chukchi, who lived on the coast, came up with a rotating harpoon and frame boats covered with skins, on which they could go out to sea to catch sea animals. Hunters in the interior regions of Chukotka from the end of the 1st century. tamed the deer and became reindeer herders.
In the middle of the 17th century. The territory of modern Chukotka Autonomous Okrug became part of Russia. At the same time, the first Russian settlements appeared in Chukotka.
The entry of the Chukchi into Russia occurred at a time when inter-tribal and inter-clan wars were raging here. When these lands were annexed to Russia, the wars ended and a slow process of cultural and everyday transformation began. Joining Russia contributed to the development of large-scale herding of reindeer herding.
During the years of Soviet power, deposits of metal ores and coal were found in Chukotka, and the development of these lands began.
The Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is located at the extreme northeastern tip of Eurasia, it occupies the Chukotka Peninsula and the adjacent part of the mainland and islands, washed by the waters of three northern seas as part of two oceans.
There are two categories of these in Chukotka: workers in the mining industry, which forms the basis of the district’s economy, and the indigenous population, as centuries ago, engaged in traditional types of fishing.
Chukotka has set several unique survival records in the Far North. This is where Pevek, the northernmost city in Russia, is located. From 1949 to 1957, the administration of Chaunlag and Chaunchukotlag, which were part of Dalstroy, a special system of Soviet forced labor colonies, was located in Pevek and Egvekinot.
Dalstroy was created in 1931. The task of the trust was to obtain the maximum amount of gold in the shortest possible time, explore and extract other strategically important minerals, as well as create a network of roads and villages. There were few civilian workers, and from 1938 Dalstroy began to use prison labor.
When Dalstroy came under the control of the NKVD, Chaunchukotlag and Chukotstroylag used prisoner labor in Chukotka. They had about 20 thousand prisoners at their disposal, mainly employed in the extraction and processing of minerals, as well as the construction of industrial facilities in the port and mines. Labor in permafrost and harsh climates led to the death of a significant number of prisoners. The rest were saved only by the death of I.V. Stalin, and Dalstroy was liquidated in 1957.
As many years before Russian explorers arrived here, the Chukchi used lichen and hummock tundras as reindeer pastures. The leading branch of agriculture is reindeer husbandry, and the number of reindeer makes up a quarter of the country's entire reindeer herd.
Chukotka holidays are all associated with deer or the sea: the Festival of the Young Deer, the Festival of the First Calf (Kilvey), the Festival of Skat Kayaks, the Festival of the Whale (Polya), the Festival of Keretkun - the master spirit of the sea and sea animals.
The main economic sectors of the autonomous region are mining (mainly the extraction of coal and non-ferrous metal ores), as well as the fishing industry, which processes the catch. The local population received expanded rights to fish and hunt fur and sea animals. Chukchi artistic bone carving is highly valued all over the world.
A special place in the economy of Chukotka is occupied by the Bilibino ATPP - a unique nuclear power plant in the Far North.
Settlement across the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug remains as uneven (focal) as it was decades ago, due to harsh natural conditions. The population is located mainly along sea coasts and along river valleys. Few cities and towns owe their appearance to the development of the mining industry (Bilibino, Iultin, Beringovsky) and maritime transport (Pevek, Provideniya, Egvekinot).
There are few cities in Chukotka, and, for example, the administrative center of Anadyr is the easternmost city in the Far North. It stands at the mouth of a river flowing into the Anadyr Bay of the Bering Sea, in a permafrost zone. That's why most of the city's buildings are built on stilts: otherwise the houses will simply crumble and crawl away. The pride of Anadyr is the Anadyr Wind Farm, one of the largest wind power plants in Russia: the wind here is strong and always blows. Anadyr is also the largest seaport in Chukotka.
General information
Location: Far East of Russia.Administrative status: subject of the Russian Federation in the Far East.
Administrative location: Far Eastern Federal District, Far Eastern Economic Region.
Founded: 1930
Status of an independent subject of the Federation: since 1992 (status confirmed in 1993 by decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation).
Administrative center: Anadyr, 14,326 people. (2010).
Settlements(with a population of more than a thousand people): Bilibino - 5592 people. (2010), Pevek - 4721 people. (2010), Coal Mines - 3666 people. (2010), Egvekinot - 3034 people. (2010), Providence - 2034 people. (2010).
Languages: Russian, Chukchi.
Ethnic composition: Russians - 49.6%, Chukchi - 25.3%, Ukrainians - 5.7%, Eskimos - 3%, others - 16.4% (2010).
Religions: Orthodoxy, shamanism.
Currency: ruble.
Rivers: Anadyr, Omolon, Velikaya, Amguema, Big and Small Anyui.
Lakes: Krasnoe, Elgygytgyn, Pekulneyskoe.
Distance: 6200 km east of Moscow.
Neighboring countries and territories: in the west - (Yakutia), in the north - , in the northeast - , in the east - the USA and the Bering Sea, in the southeast - Kamchatka Territory (Koryak District), in the south - Magadan Region.
Numbers
Area: 721,481 km2.Population: 50,540 people. (2015).
Density: about 0.1 people/km2.
Urban population: 64.8% (2010).
Highest point: unnamed mountain on the Chantal ridge (1887 m).
Climate and weather
Arctic and subpolar oceanic on the coast, sharply continental in the interior.In winter there is strong wind, summer is short, cool and rainy.
Average January temperature: from -15°C on the coast to -39°C in the interior.
Average temperature in July: from -5°C on the coast to -10°C in the interior.
Average annual precipitation: from 500 mm on the coast to 200 mm in inland areas.
Relative humidity: 75%.
Economy
GRP: 46.9 billion rubles. (2013), per capita - 927.4 thousand rubles. (2013).
Minerals: oil, natural gas, coal, gold, tin, tungsten, copper, uranium, mercury, thermal mineral sources.
Industry: mining, food (fish processing).
Electric power industry(Bilibino ATPP).
Seaports (Anadyr, Pevek, Provideniya, Egvekinot, Beringovsky).
River navigation(rivers Anadyr, Velikaya, Bolshoi Anyui and Maly Anyui).
Agriculture: crop farming (greenhouse), livestock farming (dairy).
Traditional crafts: reindeer husbandry, sea and river fishing, hunting fur and sea animals, artistic bone carving.
Attractions
■ Natural: extreme points of Russia (eastern - Ratmanov Island, eastern continental - Cape Dezhnev), Lake Krasnoye, crater lake Elgygytgyn, thermomineral springs Mechigmensky, Lorinsky, Chaplinsky and Senyavinsky, Telekayskaya and Tnekveemskaya groves, state nature reserve "Wrangel Island".■ Archaeological: Neolithic settlements and burial grounds (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium AD), including the archaeological site of federal significance Ekven on Cape Dezhnev and the Paleo-Eskimo site of Devil's Ravine on the island. Wrangel; ancient Eskimo sanctuary Whale Alley on Itigran island.
■ Pevek city: Monument of Glory (1985), Orthodox Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1994).
■ Anadyr city: memorial “Chukotka to the Front” (1985), Museum of Local Lore, Museum Center “Heritage of Chukotka”, Holy Trinity Cathedral (2005), petrified forest (Upper Paleocene), monument to the writer Yuri Rytkheu (2011) .
Curious facts
■ The total population of the Far North of Russia is about 11.5 million people, and the density is less than 1 person/km 2 .■ When Pevek became the center of the Dalstroy camps, it was immediately classified and for some time remained simply a closed village. But when in 1951 Pevek, which by that time had managed to expand, was transformed into an urban-type settlement, the government decree about this was classified as “secret”. And for another fifteen years after the liquidation of Dalstroy, Pevek was not indicated on geographical maps due to the strategic objects built nearby. It became a city only in 1967.
■ In terms of GRP per capita, the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is second only to the oil-producing Tyumen and Sakhalin regions.
■ The city of Anadyr was founded in 1889, when the Russian military doctor and polar explorer L.F. Grinevetsky, fulfilling the decree of the government of Tsarist Russia on the formation of the Anadyr Okrug in the northeasternmost territory of the state, founded the Novo-Mariinsk post at the mouth of the Kazachka River.
■ Crater lake Elgygytgyn was formed about 3.6 million years ago as a result of a meteorite impact on the earth’s surface.
■ Bilibino ATPP is the only nuclear power plant located in the permafrost zone.
■ Radio “Purga” is the first (founded in 2001) and only local radio station in Chukotka, providing round-the-clock information and entertainment broadcasting from Anadyr. Broadcasting is conducted in both Russian and Chukotka languages. The first melody played on the air was the anthem “God Save the Tsar!”
■ Over 8,000 rivers more than 10 km long flow through the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug.
■ Holy Trinity Cathedral in the center of Anadyr is the world's largest operating Orthodox wooden church, built on permafrost and accommodating up to a thousand parishioners. Refrigeration units were installed along the entire length of the pile foundation to prevent summer thawing (in Chukotka they say “thawing”) of the soil; the temperature under the building never exceeds -3 "C. The design service life of the structure is 500 years.
■ Chukotka Autonomous Okrug is the only one of the four in Russia that is not part of another subject of the Russian Federation. Chukotka extends from the Bering Strait to the Kolyma River and from the Arctic coast to Kamchatka. It occupies the entire northeastern tip of the Eurasian continent. This majestic land, with a total area of 737.7 thousand square meters. km., almost half lies beyond the Arctic Circle.
The Chukotka Peninsula cuts like a wedge between two oceans - the Pacific and the Arctic and is washed by three shelf seas - the East Siberian, Chukotka and Bering Seas. Full-flowing rivers carry their waters to them through wide valleys: Anadyr, Omolon, Big and Small Anyui, Chaun, Pegtymel and Amguema. Among the Chukotka tundra, in the foothills, in the floodplains of rivers and in the craters of extinct volcanoes, many lakes shine.
Chukotka includes several coastal islands: o. Wrangel and Fr. Herald, as well as Fr. Ratmanov in the Bering Strait, from which to the American island. Kruzenshtern (Little Diomede) is a little more than 4 kilometers.
The climate in Chukotka is more severe than in neighboring Alaska. There are long winters and short summers. The temperature of the hottest month, July, ranges from +4 to +14°C. The Chukotka coast is one of the windiest regions of Russia. Record squalls reach 80 meters per second here. Most of the peninsula is bound by permafrost.
The seas surrounding Chukotka are home to fin whales, killer whales, bowhead and gray whales, bearded seals, ringed seals, striped seals and walruses. Pacific salmon spawn in the rivers of the Bering Sea coast of Chukotka. The peninsula's reservoirs are rich in char, grayling, pike and cod. Chukotka is home to reindeer, bighorn sheep, and elk. Sable, arctic fox, red fox, wolverine, wolf, and brown bear are found here. In the valley of the Anadyr River and in the lower reaches of its tributaries, ermine, weasel and lynx are found. Wrangel and Herald Islands and the northern coast of the Chukotka Peninsula are the main breeding areas for polar bears. On the shores of seas and lakes, in the Arctic tundra and forests you can find nesting sites of the glaucous glaucous and sandhill crane, snow goose and partridge, goshawk and cuckoo...
The diversity of the flora of Chukotka is very great - from dwarf plants of the Arctic tundra to dense thickets of larch taiga. Thermal mineral springs, of which there are also many in Chukotka, serve as a haven for many rare plant species of the peninsula.
In the depths of the Chukotka Peninsula lie deposits of gold, tin, silver and copper, tungsten, mercury, platinum group metals, oil and gas, coal and other minerals...
The peoples of Chukotka have a history spanning thousands of years. Their distant predecessors - mammoth and bison hunters - came here from Eastern Siberia 25 thousand years ago. In these ancient times, on the site of the Bering Strait there was an isthmus - Beringia. Some of the inhabitants of Chukotka crossed Beringia to Alaska, and people from Siberia became the ancestors of the American Indians. Millennia passed, the outlines of the continents, the natural world of the Arctic and the cultural traditions of the polar pioneers changed.
About 4 thousand years ago, a culture of walrus, seal, and whale hunters arose on the coasts of the Bering and Chukchi Seas. Its heyday came in the first centuries of our era. It is from this era that ancient items made from walrus tusk, deer antler, wood, and stone, depicted on the pages of the calendar, date back. They were discovered near Uelen - the center of modern bone-carving art in Chukotka, in the ancient settlement of Ekven, on the coast of the Bering Strait. Archaeological excavations have been carried out here for 40 years. In recent years, they have been carried out by a joint archaeological expedition of the State Museum of Oriental Art (Moscow) and the Department of Culture of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug (Anadyr). The expedition's findings contain invaluable information about the distant past of the Asian Eskimos and coastal Chukchi, about the origins of their unique art of bone carving.
This is Chukotka - a real treasury of the North-East of Russia, the many-sided and majestic Land of the joyful sun.
Posted Sun, 09/11/2014 - 08:51 by Cap
walrus rookery in Chukotka 
TOURISM IN CHUKOKA
There are places in the world that seem specially created to test a person’s “strength.” Chukotka is one of them. A land of permafrost, winds and blizzards, cutting two oceans like a rocky wedge, Chukotka reveals its unique beauty only to those who are boldly ready to meet difficulties. The extreme climate has shaped a very special life philosophy of indigenous peoples, whose way of life was initially subordinated to a higher goal - survival.
That is why in Chukotka it has always been considered very important to cultivate fortitude and strength of body, physical endurance and dexterity. And today the development of sports in the district plays a significant role. Moreover, both Olympic and national sports are popular. Dog and reindeer sled races and kayak competitions are an exciting and colorful spectacle that many come from afar to admire. However, many bright impressions and unique sensations await the brave traveler in Chukotka.
This ancient land seems to breathe eternity itself. The entire appearance of Chukotka is permeated with clarity, directness and nakedness. And in the third millennium, here you can see the same landscape that once appeared to the eyes of Russian pioneers: convincingly simple outlines of coasts and mountains, like straight valleys carved with a chisel, scattered lakes and clear rivers flowing into icy seas.
The tourist will not be indifferent to the hospitality of the original owners of this land - the Chukchi, Eskimos, Evens, Chuvans, their dances and songs, their original art, carefully preserved for centuries... Chukotka is an amazing land that has managed to preserve life and the ability to flourish in harsh polar conditions. During the short northern summer, in permafrost conditions, a miracle occurs here every year - a real riot of nature's revival, captivating people with its unique beauty. The hubbub of bird colonies, the piercing blue of estuaries merging with the sky, the bright colors of the tundra, reminiscent of a colorful carpet...
However, snow-covered Chukotka is no less attractive for tourists who are ready to test their courage and perseverance. After all, the white silence seems monotonous only at first glance - life among the snow does not stop for a minute! Do you know how warm it is even in the most severe cold in a yaranga? Have you ever ridden a dog or reindeer sled? Can you imagine how they hunt a walrus and how delicious smelt caught by yourself is? If you want to take a break from civilization in the pristine world of nature, if you are attracted by the unknown and attracted by a thirst for adventure, then a trip to Chukotka will be a real pleasure for you!
(Chukotka), an archaeological complex consisting of two rows of huge bones of bowhead whales dug into the ground.
The complex was opened in 1976 by a group of researchers from the Institute of Ethnography of the USSR Academy of Sciences under the leadership of M. A. Chlenov.
Considered one of the wonders of Russia!
However, until recently no one knew anything about her. There is a unique archaeological complex northeast of Providence Bay, in the Bering Strait, on Yttygran Island. According to scientists, Whale Alley is considered a miracle not only from a scientific but also from an archaeological point of view.
The bay, on the shore of which the monument is located, is surrounded from the northeast and southwest by steep rocky ledges, but between them the hills decrease somewhat and form a relatively gentle slope, covered with various tundra vegetation. Against this green background, groups of whale jaw pillars that seem bright white from a distance stand out clearly, and when approaching the shore above the grassy edge of the beach, the bizarre outlines of whale skulls, embedded in the pebbles with a narrow bow, become visible.
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SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND PHOTO:
Team Nomads
http://www.chukotka.org
http://www.visitchukotka.com
http://www.chukotken.ru/
S. Bolashenko. Narrow gauge railways of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug (June 23, 2007).
Golubchikov Yu.N. Geography of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. — Moscow: IPC “Design. Information. Cartography", 2003. - 320 p. — ISBN 5-287-00080-4.
Belikovich A.V., Galanin A.V. Chukotka: natural and economic essay. - Moscow: Art-Liteks, 1995. - P. 98-99.
Committee on Sports and Tourism of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
In Chukotka in 2010, an increase in the number of tourists was recorded // Portal of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
http://www.photosight.ru/
photo authors: A. Kutsky, V. Silantyev, S. Shulga, S. Anisimov,
Tourism in Chukotka is no longer a myth, but a reality // ratanews.ru
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug - article from the Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Official website of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Legislation of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
S. A. Arutyunov, I. I. Krupnik, M. A. Chlenov. "Whale Alley". Antiquities of the islands of the Senyavin Strait. 1982.
Leontyev V.V., Novikova K.A. Toponymic dictionary of the north-east of the USSR. - Magadan: Magadan Book Publishing House, 1989, p. 161.
A. A. Korobkov. Red Book of Russia (1981).
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